memeorandum: Tucker Carlson confirms it: ‘I lie’ (Erik Wemple/Washington Post)

9:20 AM ET, September 15, 2021

Top Items:

Stephanie Sierra / ABC7:

CA recall price tag ‘could be’ more than $300M, secretary of state says, as experts call for reform … Cost of CA recall ‘could be’ more than $300M, secretary of state says — SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KGO) — California's 2021 recall election is on track to be one of the most expensive to date …

Discussion: Vox, The Editorial Board, New York Times and Los Angeles Times

Jonathan Martin / New York Times:

Newsom's Anti-Trump Recall Strategy Offers Republicans a Warning for 2022 — California Democrats were able to nationalize the vote — thanks to an avalanche of money, party discipline and, above all, an easily demonized opponent. — SAN LEANDRO, Calif. — California basks in its clairvoyance.

Discussion: Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The Federalist, Financial Times and NBC Bay Area

Los Angeles Times:

French Laundry. Pandemic. Trump. Chaos. All played big as voters cast recall ballots — To hear many at the polls on Tuesday, the effort to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom was just another political end run by Trump supporters to bypass the normal election process when they didn't have majority support.

Discussion: Outside the Beltway and The Guardian

Perry Bacon / Washington Post:

Newsom's winning recall strategy offers a playbook for Democrats in 2022 — The Democratic establishment played its cards exactly right in California — much to my surprise. — I watched the developments in Golden State politics this year with a mix of worry and annoyance.

Discussion: National Review, Associated Press, NPR, Politico and Kaiser Health News

Alex Seitz-Wald / NBC News:

Exit polls in California Gov. Newsom recall election show support for Covid restrictions — Ahead of polls closing in California's recall election, where voters are deciding whether to remove Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom from office, NBC News exit polls found support for the Covid mitigation measures he instituted in the state.

Michael R. Blood / Associated Press:

GOP's Elder concedes California recall, hints: ‘Stay tuned’ — LOS ANGELES (AP) — A defiant Larry Elder conceded his fight to become California's next governor but indicated his first campaign might not be his last. “Stay tuned,” the Republican talk radio host told supporters.

Discussion: The Hill, The Federalist, New York Magazine and Honolulu Star-Advertiser

CNN:
5 takeaways after Gov. Gavin Newsom prevails in California recall

Discussion: Associated Press, RedState and Washington Post

Washington Post:
California Gov. Gavin Newsom defeats the recall effort to remove him from office

Discussion: Yahoo News, CNN and Washington Examiner

Los Angeles Times:
Newsom soundly defeats California recall attempt

Discussion: HotAir, CBS News, Real Clear Politics, Power Line, CBS Sacramento, NBC Chicago, ABC7 and CBS Los Angeles

Ariel Edwards-Levy / CNN:
California Democrats voted along broader political lines to save Newsom, CNN exit poll shows

Discussion: New York Times, American Prospect, National Review, Los Angeles Times, New York Post, Washington Examiner, Politico and Bloomberg

New York Times:
California Recall Election Results

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Los Angeles Times, HuffPost, Sacramento Bee, NOQ Report, Daily Kos, Associated Press and The Wrap

Jonathan Swan / Axios:

Mark Milley's crisis — When Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley goes before Congress on Sept. 28, he may face some of the most hostile questioning of any modern four-star general. — Driving the news: Newly released excerpts from “Peril” by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa …

Discussion: Washington Post, Raw Story, Townhall, The Gateway Pundit, The Daily Caller and National Review

Timothy L. O'Brien / Bloomberg:

No, General Milley, President Trump Wasn't Losing It — The former commander in chief has been his own authentic self consistently all his life. — General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was so consumed with fear that former President Donald Trump might launch “rogue” …

Discussion: National Review, The American Spectator, CNN, Washington Post, Fox News, CBS News, Insider, Raw Story, Breitbart, Becker News and BizPac Review

Michael S. Schmidt / New York Times:
Woodward's Book on Trump Describes General's Secret Calls to China

Discussion: CNN, Washington Post, The National Pulse, 19FortyFive, Crooks and Liars, TheBlaze, The Hill, RedState and Insider

CNN:
Woodward/Costa book: Worried Trump could ‘go rogue,’ Milley took secret action to protect nuclear weapons

The Daily Beast:
Trump Calls Allies to Demand Gen. Mark Milley Be ‘Arrested’ for ‘Treason’

Discussion: HotAir, Insider, CNN, Trending Politics, Washington Post, Townhall, Raw Story and Rolling Stone

CNN:
Woodward/Costa book details GOP infighting over how to handle Trump after election loss

Discussion: The Hill, Raw Story, American Greatness, Insider, Washington Post, Mediaite, The Daily Caller and HotAir

Tucker Carlson / Fox News:
Mark Milley committed treason, and others were implicated

Discussion: NBC News and Just The News

Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
Awful new revelations about Trump and Jan. 6 show Mike Pence is no hero

Discussion: CNN, Raw Story, Politico, Mediaite and The Hill

Mychael Schnell / The Hill:
Trump calls Milley story ‘fake news’

Discussion: Japan Times, The Times of Israel, Fox News, Breitbart, Newsbusters, CBS News, Asia Times, Washington Times, TheBlaze, Right Side Broadcasting …, The Gateway Pundit and Mediaite

Isaac Stanley-Becker / Washington Post:
Top general was so fearful Trump might spark war that he made secret calls to his Chinese counterpart, new book says

Bryan Lowry / Miami Herald:

Capitol Police officers face discipline for photos with rioters — A Capitol Police officer facing disciplinary action told investigators that he posed for a photo with a suspect during the Jan. 6 riot in order to identify him later. — But the officer never shared that plan with his supervisor …

Discussion: Sacramento Bee

Julie Weil / Washington Post:
D.C. prepares for far-right protesters during day of festivals, gatherings

Discussion: Politico and The Hill

Julia Ainsley / NBC News:
DHS expects about 700 people to show for pro-Trump D.C. rally Saturday, official says

Discussion: Raw Story, The Hill, Patterico's Pontifications, National Review and CBS News

Greg Evans / Deadline:

Norm Macdonald Dies: Influential Comedian & Former ‘SNL’ Weekend Update Anchor Was 61 — Norm Macdonald, whose laconic delivery of sharp and incisive observations made him one of Saturday Night Live's most influential and beloved cast members, died today after a nine-year private battle with cancer.

Sydney Morning Herald:

Ministers granted border exemptions to attend urgent meeting in Canberra — Normal text sizeLarger text sizeVery large text size — Several federal cabinet ministers were called to a top-secret meeting in Canberra on Wednesday ahead of a major international development expected out of the United States on Thursday morning.

New York Times:

Ex-U.S. Intelligence Officers Admit to Hacking Crimes in Work for Emiratis — They were among a trend of Americans working for foreign governments trying to build their cyberoperation abilities. — WASHINGTON — Three former American intelligence officers hired by the United Arab Emirates …

Discussion: Washington Post, Washington Post, U.S. Department of Justice, Reuters, UPI, MyNorthwest.com, Reuters, The Last Refuge, One America News Network, Al Jazeera, Associated Press, Bloomberg and Political Wire, more at Techmeme »

David Ignatius / Washington Post:
The UAE's Machiavellian journey from ‘Little Sparta’ to ‘Little Singapore’

Discussion: The Times of Israel and Reuters

Timothy Noah / New Republic:

Taxing Wealth Is a Fool's Errand — “TAX THE RICH,” blared the red lettering on the back of Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's white evening gown at last night's Met Gala, the word “RICH” lettered impudently across her rump. Yes, but how? The lead story in Tuesday's New York Times …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, Insider, Bloomberg and New York Times

Brooke Singman / Fox News:

McAuliffe seen on Amtrak without mask, skirting federal mask mandates; passenger calls it a ‘double standard’ — Amtrak passenger who saw McAuliffe July 29 called violation of the rules an ‘absolutely double standard’ — Fox News Flash top headlines for September 14

Discussion: Washington Examiner, Glenn Greenwald, New York Times, National Review, HotAir, New York Post, Breitbart, TheBlaze, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, alicublog, The Federalist, RedState, Twitchy and Townhall

Reid Wilson / The Hill:
New Hampshire state representative leaves GOP over opposition to vaccine mandate

Discussion: Raw Story, Axios and Decider

Khudai Noor Nasar / BBC:

Afghanistan: Taliban leaders in bust-up at presidential palace, sources say — A major row broke out between leaders of the Taliban just days after they set up a new government in Afghanistan, senior Taliban officials told the BBC. — Supporters of two rival factions reportedly brawled …

Discussion: Fox News

Justin Haskins / The Hill:

Biden's wildly unconstitutional vaccine mandate — In what may go down as one of the most significant attempts to expand the power of the presidency in modern history, President Biden announced on Sept. 9 a series of sweeping new vaccine mandates, which, together, could affect as many 100 million people.

Discussion: Washington Post, The Reactionary and Washington Examiner

BBC:

North Korea fires two ballistic missiles into East Sea, South says — North Korea has fired two ballistic missiles across its east coast, South Korea's military says, its first ballistic missile test in six months. — The tests, a breach of UN resolutions, came as South Korea …

Discussion: Associated Press, The Guardian, Al Jazeera, Japan Times, KRON4 and New York Times

Sabrina Siddiqui / Wall Street Journal:

Biden to Meet With Top Executives on Covid-19 Vaccine Mandate — Microsoft, Walgreens and others are expected to give their input after president announced plan to contain pandemic — WASHINGTON—President Biden is expected to meet Wednesday with executives from companies including Walt Disney Co. …

Discussion: Associated Press, The Hill, Bloomberg, Insider and New York Post

David K. Li / NBC News:

Philadelphia to pay $2M to Black woman beaten by officers, separated from toddler during unrest … The city of Philadelphia will pay $2 million to a Black woman who was pulled from a car, beaten by officers and had her toddler used for social media fodder by the police union, officials said.

Discussion: TheGrio, The Root, The Hill and The Philadelphia Inquirer

Erik Wemple / Washington Post:

Tucker Carlson confirms it: ‘I lie’ — Fox News host Tucker Carlson is fashioning something of a professional defense: Sure, he lies, but not the way those guys at CNN lie. — In a 2018 podcast appearance, he ripped into CNN “Reliable Sources” host Brian Stelter. “He's just such a pompous little guy. ...

Discussion: The Hill, Progress Pond and Insider

Fox News:

AOC hit with ethics complaint over Met Gala attendance — American Accountability Foundation asks for probe into whether Ocasio-Cortez accepted ‘impermissible gift’